Best Psychological Constraints For Becoming A Rounded Forex Trader

Trading in foreign currencies requires skill, the right personality type, and patience, to name a few of the necessary factors, but a trader must also accept how he fits into the market and what limitations are present that will impede his capabilities.  There are basic principles that must be accepted as unchangeable.  Once accepted, then the challenge becomes how to operate within these constraints to survive and thrive.

To begin with, your competition has you outnumbered.  Banks and hedge funds have enormous resources, staff, and years of experience at what they are doing.  They have access to more and better information than you could ever hope to obtain and the research personnel to make sense of it all in an instant.  Within this context, never expect to outguess the market based on fundamental information.  If you have some success at this approach, it is more likely to be dumb luck than skill.  Invest your time searching for opportunities where you know that your trading plan will yield results.

There is a benefit to having so many well-informed traders in the market.  They will not agree on their interpretations.  They will make mistakes.  There will be general distribution of opinions across statistical expectations.  These differences result in volatility, and foreign exchange trading would not exist without the volatility that these well-financed experts create.  A trader’s life is one of speculation.  70% of traders favor jumping aboard an obvious trend and then riding it for all it is worth.  Learn to accept what the market gives you, another basic tenet. Its similar to deciding if and when to start your own business. Accutmep is a prime example of a company that started with its ups and downs but in the end deemed a success.

Technical analysis skills are a must, even if you are not comfortable with analytical methods.  The simple fact is that the preponderance of traders, bankers, hedge fund “black boxes”, and any other trading “robots” are accomplished or have been programmed to recognize every potential technical pattern or alert system ever conceived.  If you do not see the inevitable before you and understand the high probability movements that are expected, then you are tempting fate to whipsaw you from one end to the other.  Learn to spot patterns and Fib lines of support and resistance, and follow a few indicators if only to know what others are watching.

Forex markets are volatile.  Government officials were actually shocked by the size and constancy of fluctuations in the currency markets after restrictions were lifted back in the seventies.  No one understood it then, and no one can explain it now, but volatility is the name of the game.  If momentum builds in one direction, it will take time and force to reverse.  If markets stall, you must accept that momentum is building on the sidelines, far from view, and that a breakout or reversal is imminent.  There is no sense in standing by the dam waiting for the breakwater to appear.  Go downstream and wait.  When the rush materializes, grab on and ride.  It is not necessary to pick perfect entry and exit points to be a winner.

Lastly, accept that having losing trades is “normal”.  Yes, you will have a winning streak here and there, but losing streaks are common, even over months at a time.  Prudent money management techniques that limit position sizes to 2% to 3% will keep you in the game.  Your “stops” will also get you out of losers early, the mark of an effective trader.  Be patient and disciplined in your approach.

Forex trading is high risk and difficult, but accepting the constraints within the market and acting accordingly can provide a path to success if you stick with it.

Small Business Lending Is Finally Increasing

When economic insanity erupted in 2008, the global credit crisis brought the global economy to the brink of a complete collapse.  Most Americans are actually a bit unclear as to what exactly happened in 2008 that almost caused the world as we know it to end.

Sure, the Subprime Mortgage Market completely imploded.  And that caused lots of high-powered financial firms (Fannie & Freddie, Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, etc) to fail.  But the real killer was what happened in the credit markets.

Now, this may sound insane, but our modern economy actually operates at the highest level by banks exchanging credit in an overnight lending market.  Banks fund their day-to-day operations by borrowing and lending to one another.  If banks stop lending to one another, the entire global economy collapses.  And this is exactly what happened in 2008.  Once the Subprime market imploded, banks did not know which other banks were the next to fall, so they all stopped lending to each other in fear that they wouldn’t get paid back.  This led to a credit crisis that literally almost destroyed our modern economy.

Now, three and a half full years after the collapse, banks are still hesitant to lend!  The U.S. government stepped in the picture in the fall of ’08 in order to prop up failing banks, and this meant that banks wouldn’t fail, which mean that banks started to lend to each other.  But the U.S. government didn’t step in to prop up small businesses.  Therefore, for the last three and a half years, banks have been very, very hesitant to loan to small businesses for fear of not getting paid back.  Banks know they will get paid back from other banks, via the government.  But how will they get paid back if Joe’s Plumbing Company goes down?  Well, they won’t, and that is why they stopped lending.  And merchant account services became more difficult to secure.

Signs of Life

Throughout 2009 and 2010, small business lending was at record lows.  Banks were simply not lending.  In 2011, that picture started to change.  The Obama Administration passed the Recovery Act and the Small Business Jobs Act, which helped the Small Business Administration lend a whopping $30 billion in FY2010.

Just a few weeks ago, on February 29^th, the Wall Street Journal published a story titled, At Last! Banks Rev Up Lending.   The article cites a report released by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), which stated that U.S. banks posted their biggest quarterly increase in lending in four years.  That is substantial, and it is a great sign that we are on the path of recovery.

A second key stat in the FDIC report was that loan losses during 2011 fell to their lowest level since early 2008.  Now, remember these banks are a bit freaked out of lending to small businesses because of fear they won’t get paid back.  Therefore, banks love to see loan losses at multi-year lows.  This should continue to bolster risk sentiment among the banking world, and support the continuation of this lending trend.  It will also make merchant account services easier to access.

If you have been hesitant to apply for a small business loan over the last few years because you simply saw it as a pointless waste of time, cheer up.  Banks are lending again, at least to some degree, and it may be time to finally make a trip to the local community bank and put this recovery to the test.

Putting Kids Through College at No Cost to You

It is no surprise that putting kids through college can cost an arm and a leg. Many parents are faced with the dilemma of trying to find a way to pay for their kids’ college education while also putting themselves in a position to retire in the near future. Some parents have multiple kids that they need to put through college at the same time, which can compound this financial dilemma.

The prospect of going into debt this late in your life to put your kids through college can seem daunting, and it may prevent you from meeting your own goals for the future. There are a number of different strategies you and your child can employ to pay for college without you having to pay a dime towards their education expense. Consider these strategies:

1. AP Credit 

Many high schools today offer AP, or Advanced Placement, courses. These courses provide kids with a college-level education on the course material while also providing them with credit towards high school graduation. After completing a full AP course, students are then eligible to sign up for and take an AP exam. By earning a good score on the AP exam, students can earn college credit. Typically, a single AP exam may provide up to three credit hours. Many high schools allow students to start taking AP courses in their sophomore year, which provides students with ample opportunity to earn a significant amount of college credit before they even graduate high school.

2. CLEP Exams

If your student’s high school career is almost over or has already ended, and he or she hasn’t benefited from credit available through AP exams, your student may still be able to earn credit through CLEP exams. CLEP exams allow students to study independently on various different course topics, and then take an exam when they feel they are knowledgeable of the course material. There is a small cost associated with these courses, as there is with AP exams. However, the fee is nominal compared to the cost of taking a college course. In fact, it is affordable enough for students to pay for on their own from money earned in their part-time job.

3. Community College Courses 

Community college is far more affordable to pay for than major colleges and universities are. Many students today are taking their lower-level college courses at a community college, and then transferring that credit to the school they wish to graduate form. Students can live at home and pay for their own community college courses, either through student loans or from their part-time job income.

4. Scholarships

There are a very large number of scholarships and grants that your child may apply for. These scholarships and grants equate to free money for college. While some scholarships and grants are based on academic performance, others are available to students based on need, based on community service projects they have participated in, based on ethnicity and more.

5. Student Loans

Many students will be able to earn a significant number of credit hours through these efforts. However, most students will need some financial assistance to pay for at least a portion of their college education. Student loans are available through the federal government as well as private lending institutions. You can help your child research student loan APR interest rates and ensure that the loans are taken out in your student’s own name.

While you may encourage your children to earn a college degree, you don’t have to pay for it yourself. These strategies may enable your child to pay for his or her entire college education without your financial assistance.

Save tons of money on textbooks by renting instead of buying

To all of you starving students out there!

Did you know there is a way to save money on textbooks? Renting your textbooks can save you 40-90%. Check the following link to see an example on how you can save a ton of money when you rent textbooks.

If you want to rent from them next semester, this is how it works:

It’s pretty simple, go to campusBookRentals.com, search for the textbook you need, check out, save big money by renting textbooks, and receive your books with free shipping to boot. If you drop a class, you can get a full refund within 30 days. You can rent your textbooks for as long as you need them with a 15 day grace period. You can even buy your texts at the end of your rental period if you fall in love…

The best part is their making a difference program:

For every textbook you rent, a portion of the proceeds go to Operation Smile.

Campusbookrentals.com has officially teamed up with Operation Smile, an out of this world, awesome organization, that performs life changing cleft lip surgeries on children whose families could not otherwise afford it. They have committed to donating enough money to cover a minimum of 1,000 life changing surgeries. They hope to beat that number, but it’s a significant commitment. Like Big!

7 Money Saving Ideas for Boaters

Owning a boat that you can jump into whenever you feel the need to escape for a few hours is a nice thing to have. The only problem is that it costs money to operate a boat. Some people call their boat a hole in the water that they throw their money into–it’s an old joke, but at times it can seem that way. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce the operating costs. Following are a few money saving ideas for boaters.

Shop Around

One of the best ways to save money on boating costs is do a lot of research before you actually buy a boat. Because the economy is tight at this time, you may be able to get a really good deal. Boat sellers are continually looking for ways to move their product, and this could work to your advantage. Due to the fact that a boat is a luxury item, they aren’t selling very well, so boat dealers are willing to give you a price break in order to make a sale. Before you go looking for a boat, you should spend some time reading boating magazines and watching local newspapers for sale ads. You should also visit a few boat shows to find out what’s available, and get an idea of the price. Continuing the shop around theme, you should also visit a variety of lenders in order to get a loan at the best rates.

Routine Maintenance

Performing routine maintenance is a good way to save money. If you keep your boat’s motor in proper tune, it will run more efficiently. In the same way that a well-tuned engine helps you get good gas mileage in a car or truck, a boat’s motor will give you more operating hours for the price of a gallon of gas than one that is spitting and sputtering. You should also keep the hull clean so it will cut through the water with a minimum of drag.

Buy Quality Parts

You may be tempted to save a few bucks by buying replacement parts from the discount bin. However, there is a valid reason for using name brand parts–they’re usually built better and will usually last longer. You may save a couple of dollars on off-brand parts, but there really is no savings if they break sooner and have to be replaced. You may as well spend the extra money on quality parts in the first place.

Buy in Bulk

Whenever possible, you should try and buy in bulk in order to save money. Purchasing things like oil in large amounts will cause the price per unit to be less than if you buy each quart of oil one by one. The same concept applies to items like cleaning and polishing supplies. Ask your fellow boaters who use the same consumables if they’d be interested in going in together to share the cost of a case of oil. You can all save money that way.

Compare Dockage to Using a Trailer

Figure out the cost of rent dock space for a season and weigh it against the cost of using a trailer to haul your boat to and from the water. If you know you’ll be fishing or skiing in different areas of a large lake, or on a variety of different smaller lakes during the boating season, it may be to your advantage to spend your money on gas instead of dockage.

Take Shorter Trips

Because the cost of fuel continues to rise, you may want to consider taking shorter trips. If you store your boat at home and use a trailer to haul it to different lakes for fishing excursions, you can save money by fishing closer to home. You can also save money once the boat is in the water by fishing longer in one spot or using paddles to propel the boat instead of continually starting and restarting the engine.

Save on Fuel

Whether it is using your car or truck engine while hauling the boat, or running the boat’s motor, there are ways to save on fuel costs. In your land vehicle, you can save money by avoiding fast starts and not letting the engine idle for long periods of time. Putting in fuel additives may also increase the engine’s efficiency. The same principles apply to your boat’s motor–it operates the same way. Instead of heading from one fishing hole to another at top speed, you can save money by taking off smoothly and running the motor at less than full speed.

Guest post from Tracy Sheldon. Tracy writes about boat insurance for BoatInsurance.org.